Chapter 9 –
“It’s simple. Do me a favor, and each time, I’ll give you a clue to help you recover your memories.”
“For example?”
“The Magic Tower, Siren.”
The name rolled lightly off Ophelia’s tongue.
“The tower of mages, shrouded in secrecy. No one knows its location, appearance, or even its affiliation.”
“I know. The only reason its existence is even known is because a few of its mages stepped into the public eye. But why bring that up all of a sudden?”
At Alais’ question, Ophelia’s indifferent gaze tilted slightly.
“Alais, why do you think no one recognizes you no matter how much you travel across this vast continent?”
“Maybe I lived a reclusive life, or had extremely bad luck…”
No way.
Mid-reply, Alais’ lips froze. His golden eyes widened in shock, fixating on Ophelia.
In response to his surprise, Ophelia slowly closed and reopened her eyes, nodding.
“You’re from the Magic Tower.”
More than that, you were its master.
It would’ve been better if she knew why he’d fallen to this state. But even just knowing something—anything—was better than nothing.
She watched Alais, frozen in shock, then snapped her fingers.
Her fingers didn’t hold enough power to teleport them, but they did the job of snapping him out of his daze.
“That was just a teaser.”
“……”
“I thought you’d have more questions after learning you’re from the Magic Tower. Are you really trusting my words that easily?”
“I was… deciding where to start. I never even considered the Tower.”
Alais rubbed his mouth thoughtfully, then let his hand drop with a heavy sigh.
Ophelia understood. It was the reaction she expected.
“It makes sense. The Tower isn’t exactly well-known.”
Its existence had only been publicly acknowledged within the past hundred years.
Because the temple classified mages as heretics and persecuted them for centuries, the Tower avoided all outside contact.
So much so that most people doubted it even existed.
On top of that, Alais believed he was from the East—a region riddled with war.
Which meant, to an outsider, Alais could easily be mistaken for a man who had lost his family and memories in the chaos of battle.
‘And didn’t he say he first woke up in the forest on the border between the Eastern Union and the Millicent Empire?’
All the conditions fit too perfectly. That’s why Alais believed it without question—that he was an Easterner.
So his shock was understandable.
But they couldn’t sit in that shock forever. Ophelia moved to the point.
“I know you have a lot of questions. But I can’t answer them for free. Once we arrive in Radyn, I need a favor. Will you do it?”
“…What do you need me to do?”
“It’s nothing difficult. For you, it’ll be easy.”
And for Ophelia, it was crucial.
Ian would drift into the seas of Radyn in three days.
A proposal from the King of Crescent, requesting a princess of the Millicent Empire, would arrive in about a month.
She had to prepare everything before then.
Looking at the big picture, Ophelia’s plan was simple.
Help Alais recover his memories, and in return, have him escort her to the Magic Tower.
But restoring his memory wasn’t that easy.
Technically, Alais hadn’t lost his memories—they had been sealed.
‘Alais seems satisfied just learning who he is…’
But that wasn’t enough for her.
If Alais didn’t regain his memories and return to his position as Tower Master, her entire plan would fall apart.
However, since Ophelia wasn’t a mage, she had no way of breaking the seal herself.
Which meant—she needed help.
But that helper didn’t necessarily have to be human.
“Ophelia.”
She turned at the voice calling her name.
Her red hair fluttered as she turned her head.
Recognizing the speaker, she greeted him.
“Alais, you made it in time.”
“You said not to be late.”
True, that’s what she had told him.
A request made in the carriage on their way to Radyn:
—”Follow the path behind Radyn Castle, and you’ll reach the beach. Meet me there after lights out. Don’t be late.”
—”Is that your request?”
—”Of course not. I’ll explain when you get there.”
—”You always reveal the details after dragging me along.”
—”It doesn’t matter, does it? I will tell you eventually.”
She noticed his eyebrow twitch slightly at that, but she ignored it.
He’d come, after all.
Sliding off the rock she’d been sitting on, Ophelia’s skirt hitched up slightly, revealing a bit of thigh—but it was night, so she didn’t mind.
Dusting her dress off, she asked casually,
“Tired?”
“Why would I be?”
“You used a lot of magic earlier.”
That late afternoon when they arrived in Radyn, Alais had dealt with local complaints, just like in his past life.
One task was calming the raging sea—a feat that astonished her again.
To silence a stormy sea with a mere wave of his hand—no matter how many times she saw it, it never got old.
But Alais looked as indifferent as ever.
“I’m fine. You look more tired.”
Concern met with concern. Ophelia tilted her head, curious, and Alais spoke with his usual stern face.
“I saw it earlier. The Lord pestering you.”
“Ah.”
She realized what he meant.
The Lord of Radyn, Haidar Radyn, had greeted her with suspiciously warm hospitality. As she recalled, his over-friendliness had lasted until she brought Ian back.
Haidar, with his Southern charm and well-built body, was undeniably handsome. If Ophelia were the type to fall for kindness, she might have fallen for him.
But she’d met many men like Haidar before.
People who flattered her not as herself, but because she was a princess.
Thinking of how Haidar had pretended to be smitten with her, Ophelia laughed and waved dismissively.
“He’s only clingy because I’m a princess. Even the Lord here knows why I was sent as an inspector.”
“And why were you sent?”
“To pick a marriage candidate.”
Alais’ expression twisted at her answer, but she didn’t notice—she was busy removing her shoes.
She placed them neatly beside the rock and stepped barefoot into the sand, bunching up her skirt and tying it at her waist as she continued.
“I’m a princess past marriageable age. My father—the Emperor—wants to sell me off at a high price. Local lords, far from the capital’s influence, are particularly troublesome for him. There, done.”
“…Then does the Lord want to marry you?”
“Who knows? Probably not. He likely just wants to see a naïve princess fall in love and make a fool of herself.”
Tapping her bundled skirt into place, she straightened her back.
She’d served as an inspector for over a year now, and one thing she’d learned: no matter where she went, she was never truly welcome.
To nobles, her commoner blood was an issue. To commoners, her royal blood was a problem.
No one saw her as just Ophelia.
She was either a maid’s bastard or a princess.
‘That’s why Ian was special.’
At first, she suspected Ian of playing with her like Haidar—but he had seen her as herself.
Or so she thought.
Indeed, he hadn’t seen her as a bastard or a princess, but that was only because he saw her under a different name—
His savior.
So once he learned she wasn’t, he had no choice but to throw her away.
Not that it mattered anymore.
Enough small talk. Ophelia tugged gently at Alais’ hand, noticing his recent silence.
“Anyway, come here. I need a favor.”
“…Are you finally going to tell me?”
“I have to—otherwise, you won’t be able to do it.”
She walked toward the shoreline. She only stopped when the waves reached her toes.
“You know what you did earlier—calming the sea? I want something similar.”
“This sea looks calm enough.”
Alais started to answer, then paused.
“…So that’s why you asked if I was tired?”
“Was it obvious?”
“A little.”
His tone sounded almost irritated, but Ophelia pressed on.
“As you can see, I don’t want you to calm the sea. What I want is for you to infuse it with your magic. Spread it far and wide. As much as you can.”
“What benefit does that give you?”
“There are things you can only see at this time of year. Tiny… jellyfish-like creatures. They glow when they absorb magic.”
Raphels—sea creatures only visible at night.
Because they were so transparent, without glowing, they couldn’t be seen.
Back then, neither she nor Ian had any magic, so they used magic stone powder to light up a blanket-sized area.
But—
“Like this?”
With a wave of his hand, the sea lit up instantly.
Ophelia exhaled in satisfaction as the glowing sea shimmered before her.
She had waited until after lights-out, picking a time when no one would be around. Perhaps another sneaky wanderer might catch a glimpse, but would anyone even believe it?
That the sea, black as a new moon night sky, suddenly shimmered like a field of white daisies after summer rain… It was like a dream.
